This is such a great idea. Instead of having a gas powered vehicle that can make use of an electric motor, make an electric vehicle that has a gas powered generator. Fantastic! Even better than just a gas powered generator – make it so it can burn other types of fuels as well.

I’d got for the Chevy Volt now. Even with the concerns over the current battery technology not being sufficient it would still make for a great vehicle. Just imagine all of those people who have short commutes – they could drive without ever burning gasoline. The suggested 40 miles would be fantastic as then my commute gasoline cost would be cut in half, if not more!

One question that came up was how much it would cost in electricity to charge it over night. Yeah, it would cost you some money but since the electrical grid typically has extra power available over night, it might not cost as much as you think. For example, Ontario is in the process of going to “Smart Metering” which means they will charge different rates based on time of day. Overnight and weekends will be the cheapest. So with an electric car, you just plug it in overnight and hook a timer to it so it only turns on during “cheap” times.